I just had to write a quick post about the dressage lesson Rox and I had yesterday with Barry! It went really well and I am pumped to ride a really forward, accurate, sharp test on Friday! He thought she could easily score into the 20's with the work we were able to do during the lesson, so that is really encouraging. He also complimented my riding and said I've done a nice job with her and I am getting a better understanding of the correct way to ride dressage :) It was nice to hear him say that for sure!!

I started out warming her up a bit before he got there because the last time I took a lesson with him I didn't feel like she was on my aids as well as she usually is when I warm her up my way. It was very humid so I didn't do a ton. He looked at my test from the mini last month and was pretty impressed, but definitely saw the areas we need to work on to get rid of the 6's and turn the 7's into 8's.

We began by doing working on the turn onto centerline quite a bit, and then rode through the whole test several times. He really wanted me to push her body outward with my inside leg and open my inside rein a little to help guide her through the turn. Think of the bend as the same as a 10m circle and ride forward through it. Keep my inside shoulder turned in to help her bend and give a little on the outside rein so her neck can come around. These got really good by the end of the lesson because I feel like we did about 20 of them!! I also need to think about starting to create the bend as we approach C so she knows which way we are going and the turn gets set up correctly.

I like the feeling of shoulder fore I was able to get on the longside before the 20 m trot circles, it helped create the bend to carry onto the circle. I need to remember to keep my outside ready super steady and a little firm on the circle to keep her shoulder from falling out and her feet tracking correctly on the circle. I can release the inside rein a little so she will stretch to the rein, but I also need to keep my inside leg pretty strong to keep the lateral bend that we lacked on the first test.

The walk transitions she did went well, she didn't get poll low and she just quietly stepped into the walk. I feel like I can half halt and bend her in the corner before A to set up the downward transition better. She could march a little more forward, so think about squeezing my calf instead of kicking. The free walk needs more stretch, think the same squeezing of the calf to get her neck lower.

I need to prepare early for the upward transition coming out of the corner so she is focused and through, especially on the outside rein. Then I can ride her forward and into the shoulder fore position again on the longside. I need to keep her up and active before the canter trans on the half circle, and think about pushing my hip at her and staying on the outside rein to keep her straight. Think about releasing the inside rein but staying steady on the outside to create more forward energy and jump in the canter instead of holding her together too much and micromanaging. Big half halts and shorter steps approaching the rail to get a steady downward, then ride forward right away and through the corners to the diagonal.

Keep her tempo and rhythm the same on the diagonal and start to change the bend early so she is prepared for the turn onto centerline. Don't let her rush and get flat up centerline, but keep pulsing forward and bring my legs back a little in the last few steps before the halt. Stronger left leg and steady right rein to help her step under with the LH.

I think we are capable of getting the quality we had in the lesson at the event, but I really have to ride her strongly with my leg and allow her to flow forward instead of taking too much on the rein. I also need to focus on keeping my elbows quiet and in and my leg underneath me. I was on her for around an hour and she was still doing good work at the end, so I'll probably shoot for 40-45 mins of warmup on Friday.